Importing from USA

dennis · Post by **dennis** » Tue Jun 17, 2008 9:28 am Etc/GMT-1+01:00

May have found a suitable 10 x 8 camera, but in the US. Can anyone with experience say which is the best shipper to ask the sender to use? I vaguely remember a thread in which someone mentioned one shipper who is bad? Thanks. Dennis.

IanG · Post by **IanG** » Tue Jun 17, 2008 11:26 am Etc/GMT-1+01:00

Both my 10x8's came from the US, via UPS. You will have to pay the Import duty and VAT, the VAT is on the shipping as well as the camera.

So remember that tax is about 22% on top of the price inc shipping. UPS were OK.

Ian

Post by **Joanna Carter** » Tue Jun 17, 2008 8:19 pm Etc/GMT-1+01:00

Provided you don't mind waiting a bit longer, good old USPS seems to work pretty well and Parcel Force don't charge as much to collect the VAT and duty as does UPS or the others.

Apple · Post by **Apple** » Wed Jun 18, 2008 12:50 am Etc/GMT-1+01:00

I'll second Joanna's suggestion - the tracking info provided by USPS / Parcelforce I've found to be next to useless (as opposed to the UPS which is updated regularly and very comprehensive.)

Yes, you'll wait a bt longer and not really know when it's turning up but there's a chance that they may forget to charge you VAT & import duty - depends what you're bringing in and how big a box it's in / how little it weighs

A 10x8 might not slip through the net quite so easily compared to some!

I'm not condoning the practice as fiddling the customs declaration value to get a lower VAT / import tax level can backfire - apart from fraud (I think) it's also the amount you're allowed to claim up to in the event of loss / damage etc so you'd lose out as well...

Andrew

dennis · Post by **dennis** » Wed Jun 18, 2008 9:51 am Etc/GMT-1+01:00

Thanks folks. As I read it the general consensus is that UPS is better than USPS (US postal service?)? I've only had books sent in & there is no duty/VAT on them. Dennis.

Post by **Joanna Carter** » Wed Jun 18, 2008 10:18 am Etc/GMT-1+01:00

dennis wrote:Thanks folks. As I read it the general consensus is that UPS is better than USPS (US postal service?)? I've only had books sent in & there is no duty/VAT on them. Dennis.

Au contraire

UPS may provide a better tracking service but they do charge rather more than USPS, just to collect the duty and VAT. If you don't mind the uncertainty on delivery date, as Andrew said, USPS/Parcel Force can be quite a lot cheaper

IanG · Post by **IanG** » Wed Jun 18, 2008 1:07 pm Etc/GMT-1+01:00

Joanna, USPS don't charge anything to collect duty and AT, they aren't allowed to.

However Royal Mail International do collect the taxes when the items is delivered, and even on small parcels charge £8. I've just picked up some Tessar lens cells, value $79, Vat £7.03, Royal Mail Handling Fee £8.

If the item had been valued at $70, or rather £36 or less then it would have been VAT free, according to the attached sticker.

Ian

Post by **Joanna Carter** » Wed Jun 18, 2008 3:22 pm Etc/GMT-1+01:00

IanG wrote:Joanna, USPS don't charge anything to collect duty and AT, they aren't allowed to.

Correct, it is Parcel Force/Royal Mail that do the collecting, but USPS are the cheapest senders because of the lower fees charged at this end.

IanG wrote:However Royal Mail International do collect the taxes when the items is delivered, and even on small parcels charge £8. I've just picked up some Tessar lens cells, value $79, Vat £7.03, Royal Mail Handling Fee £8.

That sounds about right but, that is a lot less than the £20 that UPS charge and, as I and others have found, depending on which way the wind blows, they have been known to not always collect

IanG wrote:If the item had been valued at $70, or rather £36 or less then it would have been VAT free, according to the attached sticker.

That is a myth; unless you personally carry the item into the country, there is no such thing as a "tax-free" value.

IanG · Post by **IanG** » Wed Jun 18, 2008 5:08 pm Etc/GMT-1+01:00

Joanna Carter wrote: That is a myth; unless you personally carry the item into the country, there is no such thing as a "tax-free" value.

No, you're wrong, the Customs sticker, printed by Royal Mail, says that goods imported with a value over £18 are subject to Customs Duty.

In fact, the Tessar cells were actually a Gift. The sticker goes on to says that Gifts from a private individual (outside the EU) to another private individual (in the UK) are subject to Customs Duty if the value is over £36.

This is the first time I've paid any tax on a small parcel from the US, and I've bought about 6 cameras 35mm/5x4, numerous lenses (at least 12) plus various other items.

It appears things may be changing, the Tax on my latest parcel is possibly being levied by the Royal Mail for Customs & Excise. Previously the tax sticker were from Customs & Excise themselves.

Ian

Post by **Joanna Carter** » Wed Jun 18, 2008 7:29 pm Etc/GMT-1+01:00

IanG wrote:No, you're wrong, the Customs sticker, printed by Royal Mail, says that goods imported with a value over £18 are subject to Customs Duty.

I apologise, I really should check before posting rubbish

Here is a quote from the HMRC site :

If you purchase goods through the Internet you should be aware that customs duty and VAT will be payable, as follows:

* customs duty - if the amount of duty is £7 and over
* import VAT - if the value of the goods is £18 and over

IanG wrote:In fact, the Tessar cells were actually a Gift. The sticker goes on to says that Gifts from a private individual (outside the EU) to another private individual (in the UK) are subject to Customs Duty if the value is over £36.

Here is the applicable section from the HMRC site :

Goods sent as a gift are not free of import duties and import VAT. However, customs duty will not be collected if the amount is less than £7, and import VAT is not chargeable if:

* the value of the gift does not exceed £36
* the customs declaration is completed correctly
* the gift has been sent from a private person outside the EU to a private person(s) in this country
* the gift is for the use of either yourself or your family
* there is no commercial or trade element and the gift has not been paid for either directly or indirectly
* the gift is of an occasional nature only eg for a birthday or anniversary.

Please note the purchase of goods from outside the EU to give as a gift to a relative or friend, whether or not addressed to that person, is treated as a ‘commercial consignment’ for which the import VAT relief threshold is £18 (paragraph 2.3 refers).

IanG wrote:This is the first time I've paid any tax on a small parcel from the US, and I've bought about 6 cameras 35mm/5x4, numerous lenses (at least 12) plus various other items.

It appears things may be changing, the Tax on my latest parcel is possibly being levied by the Royal Mail for Customs & Excise. Previously the tax sticker were from Customs & Excise themselves.

Hmmm, obviously Gordon Brown has taken a personal interest

Post by **masch** » Thu Jun 19, 2008 4:34 pm Etc/GMT-1+01:00

As an aside:

My Nikon 120mm Makro slipped through the net without payment, last time I ordered from B&H, when sent via USPS in a fairly small parcel. The same happened when my Wista was shipped over (one camera, two lenses).
I suppose it depends on how busy they are at the post office.

UPS on the other hand, has collected every time...

Marc

keeds · Post by **keeds** » Tue Jun 24, 2008 11:02 pm Etc/GMT-1+01:00

I've bought many things from the states. Most things have come via USPS and never had a problem. Latest purchase is a Richard Ritter 7x17 which was split over two parcels. One arrived with charges, the other has just been released from customs after about 1 month. I was required to fill in an additional form declaring value and supply original invoices etc. Hopefully it will be here in the next couple of days with reasonable charges applied....

Crossing everything...